Coronavirus UK: 20 per cent of virus cases spread through hospitals

Research has shown 20 per cent of the UK’s COVID-19 patients got the virus while in hospital for unrelated illnesses.

Up to a fifth of COVID-19 patients in the UK’s hospitals contracted the disease while already being treated there for an unrelated illness, National Health Service (NHS) bosses have revealed.

The figures are NHS England’s first estimate of the size of the problem of hospital-acquired coronavirus, which Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week said was causing an “epidemic” of deaths.

Patients with coronavirus, and hospital staff were unaware they had the virus and displaying no symptoms, were responsible for the infections.

Senior employees at multiple NHS trusts confirmed to The Guardian that in a national briefing last month on infection control and COVID-19, a senior official at NHS England told medical directors and chief nurses the rate of hospital-acquired virus infections was running at between 10 and 20 per cent, and that asymptomatic staff had caused some of the cases.

Senior doctors and hospital managers said this was a result of not having adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), or doctors, nurses and other staff not being able to get tested for the virus.

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NHS England Medical Director Professor Stephen Powis updates the nation on the COVID-19 pandemic on Sunday. Picture: Pippa Fowles/10 Downing Street/AFP

The NHS have revealed up to a fifth of COVID-19 patients in hospitals contracted the disease while being treated for unrelated illnesses. Picture: Hannah McKay/AFP

“Multiple patients my department treated who were inpatients pre lockdown got the bug and died. Obviously the timeline supports that they acquired it from staff and other patients,” one surgeon told the publication.

Last week in parliament, the PM referred to the need to tackle “these twin epidemics” of both care home residents and hospital patients dying after picking up the virus while being looked after.

It came after a Conservative MP, Laurence Robertson, told Mr Johnson his father had died of coronavirus in hospital “just a few days ago”.

“He did not catch the virus in the community; he caught it in the hospital when he went in for another illness,” Mr Robertson said.

Recent research among staff in north England hospitals run by a leading NHS trust also found that 7 per cent of staff had coronavirus but were showing no symptoms, posing a risk to patients.

“They are becoming concerned that a greater number of patients are becoming infected than they would like,” general secretary of the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association, Dr Paul Donaldson said.

“They and we at the HCSA worry that the inadequacy of PPE might be contributing to this increase in nosocomial infections.”

A senior consultant said hospital-acquired COVID-19 could mean it might not be safe for the growing number of patients who would be coming into hospitals for a planned operation as the NHS gradually returns to normal, pre-pandemic functioning.

“We know from the significant fall in hospital A&E attendances and admissions, many for serious medical conditions, that many people are worried about coming into hospital and catching the virus,” they said.

“This shows they are right to be worried; there is real risk. It mirrors the known risk for NHS frontline staff. NHS leadership now have early data to prove this hypothesis.”

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Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was a need to tackle the ‘twin epidemics’. Picture: Jessica Taylor/AFP

More than 240,000 people have now been infected with COVID-19 in the UK, and more than 34,000 have died.

The NHS statistics come as Mr Johnson acknowledged frustration over the “complex” easing of the UK’s coronavirus lockdown.

In an article for The Mail on Sunday, Mr Johnson said the government was attempting something that has “never had to be done before – moving the country out of a full lockdown, in a way which is safe and does not risk sacrificing all of your hard work”.

The PM announced the easing of some virus measures early last week.